Hello, Head Start / Kindergarten Readers

Setting the Stage for Success!

I have two goals when reading with children. You can, too.

1. To foster a love of books, stories, and reading. That one is obvious.
2. To build vocabulary.

Studies have shown that a child with a strong vocabulary makes a good reader. We want all children to eventually become independent learners, and a strong vocabulary is essential to becoming an independent learner.

Many of the students you encounter in a Head Start or kindergarten class may not have had the advantage of daily read-alouds, high-quality conversations, or other rich language-building experiences. They may enter school with weaker vocabularies. The size of a person’s vocabulary plays a direct role in reading comprehension, academic achievement, and lifelong learning. A smaller vocabulary makes it harder to learn new words, so children can quickly fall behind in school. You can really help these students by using your time with them to build their foundational, or basic, vocabulary.